News for 05 July 2016
All the news for Tuesday 5 July 2016
Ireland Undone By Clinical Dutch
A 3-goal blitz in the space of 2 minutes was the undoing of the Green Machine as a clinical Dutch side lived up to the world number 2 ranking.
The game began with the sides evenly matched and Shane O’Donoghue had the best chance for the Irish as his drag flick from a 12th minute PC was saved. 10 minutes later Mikie Watt created a chance for himself as he powered along the baseline but saw his shot hit the side of the goal. The opening goal didn’t come until the 25th minute when Mink van der Weerden scored his first of the evening from a PC. 2 minutes later Herzberger doubled the Dutch lead as he broke down the wing and fired a bullet into the corner. However the Irish took just minute to respond as Cargo was the quickest to react to a rebounded ball and Ireland were within touching distance at 2-1 going into half time.
A 3 goal rampage between the 40th and 42nd minute cost the Green Machine dearly as van der Weerden’s penalty stroke was the nail in the coffin following goals by Bakker and Pruijser. Ireland, returning from a 6 Nations tournament in Valencia, possibly struggled with the pace of the Dutch given this was the third match in 3 days for the Green Machine. But the clinical nature of the Dutch cannot be underestimated as they countered at a blistering pace and Croon made it 7 for the visitors, while Jackson got a consolation goal in the 51st minute.
Fexco Match Series
Ireland 2 (Cargo, Jackson)
The Netherlands 7 (van der Weerden x2, Hertzberger, Bakker, Pruijser, Verga, Croon)
The two sides meet again on Wednesday at 7pm in UCC.
Team: D Harte (Captain), Jackson, Gormley, Cargo, Jermyn, Magee, Caruth, Darling, Cockram, Gleghorne, C Harte
Substitutes: Carr, J Bell, Watt, Shimmins, O’Donoghue, M Bell, Good
Irish Hockey Association media release
Hosts take top spot in thrilling competition
Matai Akauola/Fiji Hockey
The hairs on the back of the neck rose as Fiji faced Tonga in the HWL Round One. This was sports entertainment at its thrilling best as both teams went through their traditional war cries before bursting into action. All of the participating teams at this event are still developing hockey within their communities, but the passion and energy that was put into this Round One event is a sign that the sport is growing fast across the Oceania region.
Both Fiji men and Fiji women finished the Hockey World League Round One event in Suva, Fiji, as overall champions after four days of thrilling, fast-paced hockey. The two teams now have six to eight months to prepare before they take on higher ranked opposition and other Round One qualifiers in HWL Round Two.
The atmosphere at the Fiji National Hockey Centre was ramped up a few notches as some of the teams started their matches with traditional Pacific Island war cries – Fiji greeted its opponents with the ‘cibi’, while Tonga laid down a challenge with the blood curdling ‘ikale tahe’.
The excitement, colour and noise all served to meet the Fiji government’s aim of lifting the national mood after the devastation wreaked across the islands by a cyclone earlier in the year.
The Fiji teams were unbeaten in all their matches, although Fiji men were run very close by a Vanuatu side, with the game going to shoot-out after it ended 4-4 in regulation time.
Fiji women’s best result was a 19-1 win against Tonga, while the men pitched in with a 15-1 win over the same opposition.
Vanuatu men finished second in the group, losing only to Fiji, while Papua New Guinea took third place after some good wins against Solomon Islands and Tonga.
In the women’s competition, Papua New Guinea took second place. They won four of their six games, including a 10-1 win over Tonga and two very close encounters with the Solomon Islands - in which Papua New Guinea emerged as 2-1 and 6-3 winners.
Among the stars who will be taking their game to the Hockey World League Round two competition are the brother and sister duo Leevan and Tiara Dutta, two of Fiji’s top goal scorers. Leevan was on form for the men, particularly when slotting seven goals past the Solomon Islands in one match, while Tiara, who also captains her team, managed to find the net nine times during Fiji’s game against Tonga.
Leevan finished top scorer on 23 goals, with Vanuatu’s Ben Sam on 17 and another Fiji player, Krristofer Mock on 12. Tiara scored four more than her brother to take the top scorer prize for the women, while teammate Maxine Browne came joint second alongside Alice Fred with 13 goals.
The final places were:
HWL Round One men:
1 Fiji - qualified for HWL 2
2 Vanuatu
3 Papua New Guinea
4 Solomon Islands
5 Tonga
HWL Round One women:
1 Fiji - qualified for HWL 2
2 Papua New Guinea
3 Solomon Islands
4 Tonga
FIH site
Can Germany reign in Rio?
Reigning Olympic champions Germany finished the Champions Trophy in bronze medal position after defeating the host nation, Great Britain 1-0. This was a good result for the German team as, in their earlier matches, the team had played promising but ultimately unfulfilled matches. For the German team, this was the penultimate competitive situation before Olympic selection, and it also provided a welcome opportunity for Valentin Altenburg to spend more time learning what his players were capable of. The coach only took charge of the senior national team in November 2015, meaning he had less than a year to prepare the team to defend their title in Rio.
Speaking about the challenges that lie ahead, Tobias Hauke said: "The Champions Trophy has been a very important tournament for us. We don't get to play teams like Australia very often, we just play them in the big tournaments, so it is good for us to play teams that we are likely to meet in Rio."
The squad that turned up in London for the Champions Trophy is far from the finished Olympic article. Many familiar names remained at home, but will have their chance to impress the coach in a four-nations tournament in Valencia, Spain. It is a factor that makes Hauke optimistic about the team's results. "We tried a few different things in the Champions Trophy, some worked, some didn't. We are just trying very hard to get better and better at each tournament we play. At the moment, we are scoring well, but our defence needs some work. We scored three goals against Australia, usually if Germany scores three against India, they win the game, but this time we conceded four."
So how does the build-up compare to London 2012. "Compared to 2012, this is totally different. Prior to 2012 we had the same coach, Markus Weise, for four years and a stable squad who had mostly been together for a long time. This time we have a new coach in Valentin Oltenburg and some new players so it is good that we have time and opportunity to experiment and make changes and improvement before Rio."
The coaching system in Germany is based around a university system. All coaches follow a course and take an internship which sees them working alongside an established coach with a national team. In this way, the German coaching philosophy remains similar from one coach to his or her successor. Hauke says this has helped the team adapt to life under a new coach. "In Germany all the coaches are pretty similar. Valentin is younger and has some different ideas to Markus. He has also seen how the game has changed and he has some more ideas that we can put into operation into games against teams such as Australia."
FIH site
Te reo calls to give an edge in Rio
Kayla Whitelock's first Olympics, in Athens in 2004, was also the first Games to incorporate a strong element of te reo Maori. Photo / Getty Images
When the women's Black Sticks take to the hockey turf in Rio next month, they will have a special advantage.
All their team calls will be in te reo Māori.
"It's words that we understand and other countries don't," said veteran team member Kayla Whitelock, 30.
"I think everyone embraced it. [Player] Piki Hamahona was involved, she could speak fluent Māori so she was kind of creating some of our words.
"So yeah, it's pretty special, obviously being Māori and to have Māori calls throughout our group and in the way we play," said Whitelock.
It was the team's Australian-born coach, Mark Hager, who introduced elements of te reo into the team after he took the coaching job in 2008.
Whitelock's first Olympics at Athens in 2004, when she was just 18, was also the first Games to incorporate a strong element of te reo Māori.
The late Ngāti Porou kaumātua Amster Reedy guided the NZ team to adopt a Māori cloak for the team's flag-bearer, pounamu (greenstone) pendants for all the athletes and a "mauri stone" carrying the spirit of the ancestors.
"Everyone rubs it and it gives off energy to us," Whitelock said. "You see every day the athletes walking into the main area rubbing this stone as they leave the village."
This year's Māori Language Week theme, Ākina te Reo (Urge on the language), is about using te reo to urge on New Zealand's Olympic athletes with phrases such as Kia kaha e hoa mā (Let's go team).
Whitelock's father, Phillip, comes from a Māori-speaking whānau from the Rangitāne iwi and has taken his children to events at their home marae at Motuiti, on State Highway 1 just north of Foxton.
She and her husband, former Crusaders and All Blacks player George Whitelock - brother of rugby stars Luke and Sam Whitelock - and their 1-year-old daughter, Addison, live next-door to George's parents on the family dairy farm near Palmerston North.
They are close to Trevor Shailer, a former Olympic boxer of Ngāti Hauiti/Ngāti Kauwhata/Ngāti Raukawa descent who is now chief executive of Sport Manawatu and deputy head of the NZ Olympic mission.
"Trevor does a really good job of bringing the culture within the group," said Whitelock.
"At every Games you get a pounamu and at the start of every tournament they have a video of the culture and where the greenstone was made, which is pretty cool.
"There's only 200 athletes or whatever and you each have a part of that culture, which is pretty special."
She will have her whole whānau behind her - assuming she will be named in the Black Sticks women's team for Rio on Thursday for her fourth Olympic Games.
As well as her husband and daughter, her parents, sisters and brother are travelling to Brazil to back her.
The whānau will stay in a hotel while Kayla stays in the Olympic village, but they will keep in touch.
"I think the NZ Olympic Committee has organised a New Zealand House close to the village where you can meet up with everyone."
Piki Hamahona. Photo / Greg Bowker
Translation
Kia eke rawa ngā wāhine Rākau Pango ki runga i te papa tākaro hōkī ki Rio ā te marama e heke mai nei, he hautoa kē tō rātou.
Ko ā rātou karanga tīma katoa kei roto kē i te reo Māori.
"He kupu e mōhio ana mātou, kāore i te aro i whenua kē," e ai ki te tautōhito nei o te tīma a Kayla Whitelock, e 30 ōna tau.
"Ki taku mōhio kei te tautoko mai te katoa. Ko (kaitākaro) Piki Hamahona rā tētahi, he matatau a ia ki te reo Māori ā nāna noa nā i hanga haere ētahi o ā mātou kupu. Nā reira, āe, he rawe nā te mea he Māori hoki ka mutu he kupu karanga Māori puta noa i tō mātou rōpū me tō mātou āhua tākaro anō hoki."
Nā te kaiako kē o te tīma nā Mark Hager i whānau kē mai rā i Ahitereiria, nāna kē i whakauru mai ētahi āhuatanga o te reo ki roto i te tīma nō tana ekenga ki te tūranga kaiako i te tau 2008.
Ko ngā kēmu Ōrimipia tuatahi i tae atu ai a Whitelock ko tērā i Ātene i te tau 2004, he 18 noa ana tau, koirā hoki Ngā Kēmu tuatahi i hau ai te uru o te reo Māori. Nā tērā kaumātua o Ngāti Porou, nā Amster Reedy i ārahi te tīma o Aotearoa ki te whakarite korowai Māori mō te kaihāpai haki o te tīma, he whakakai pounamu hoki mō ia kaitākaro, ā, he "kōwhatu mauri" anō hoki e kawe ana i te wairua o ngā tūpuna.
"Ka miria e te katoa ka pā mai ai tōna wairua," te kī a Whitelock. "Ka kite koe ia rā ko ngā kaitākaro e hīkoi ana ki te ātea ka mirimiri i te kōwhatu ka wehe atu ana rātou i te kāinga."
Ko te kaupapa o Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori i tēnei tau ko Ākina te Reo, arā mā te reo Māori kē tātou akiaki ai i ngā toa tākaro Ōrimipia o Aotearoa me ngā rerenga kōrero pēnei nā Kia kaha e hoa mā (Let's go team).
Ko Phillip te pāpā o Whitelock nō tētahi whānau kōrero Māori o Rangitāne, nāna hoki ana tamariki i whakahoki ki ngā kaupapa i tō rātou marae kāinga o Motuiti, kei te Huarahi Matua nama 1 whakateraki tonu o Te Awahou.
Kei runga kē i te pāmu miraka kau o te whānau o tana tāne kei te takiwā ki Pāmutana rātou ko tana tāne kaitākaro Crusaders o mua, Ōpango hoki ko George Whitelock - te tuakana o ngā whetū whutupōro nei o Luke rāua ko Sam Whitelock - ko tā rāua tamāhine Addison kotahi tau noa, e noho pātata ana ki ngā mātua o George.
E tata atu ana rātou ki tō Trevor Shailer, tērā toa mekemeke Ōrimipia o mua nō Ngāti Hauiti/Ngāti Kauwhata/Ngāti Raukawa, e mahi ana rā ināianei hei tumuaki mō Sport Manawatū, hei tumuaki tuarua anō hoki mō te tira Ōrimipia o Aotearoa.
"He tino toa a Trevor ki te tō mai i ngā tikanga ahurea ki roto i te rōpū," e ai ki a Whitelock.
"Ka whiwhi pounamu koe ia taenga atu ki Ngā Kēmu, ā, hei te tīmatanga o ia tōnamana he whakaata irirangi mō te ahurea tonu me te ahunga mai hoki o te pounamu, ka wani kē. E 200 noa iho rānei ngā kaitākaro ka whiwhi te katoa ki tēnei tikanga ahurea he āhuatanga whakahirahira hoki tērā."
Ko tana whānau katoa tēnā kei muri e tautoko ana - tērā anō ia ka whakahuangia ki roto i te tīma wāhine Rākau Pango mō Rio ā te Tāite mō tana Kēmu Ōrimipia tuawhā.
I tua atu i tana tāne me tana tamāhine, ko ōna mātua ērā, ko ōna teina, ko tōna tungāne hoki tērā e haere ana ki Parīhi ki te tautoko i a ia.
Ka noho hōtera te whānau engari anō a Kayla ka noho kē ki te kāinga Ōrimipia, engari ka torotoro tonu rātou.
"Ki taku mōhio kua whakaritea e te Komiti Ōrimipia o Aotearoa he Whare mō Aotearoa e tata ana ki te kāinga nā hei wāhi tūtakitaki ai te katoa," e ai ki tāna.
Te Reo Māori translation service supported by Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori.
The New Zealand Herald
Indian Hockey Team's 'Sardar'
By Akaash Dasgupta
Under Sardar Singh, Indian hockey team has the best chance of winning a medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics. © PTI
Sardar Singh. The captain of the Indian hockey team and a man who will have a big role to play if India are to win their first Olympic medal in Men's field hockey since 1980
Full Name: Sardara Singh
Born: July 15, 1986
Height: 1.76 m
Sports: Hockey
Country: India
Event: Men's Hockey
About Sardar Singh
In 2008, Sardar Singh became the youngest man ever to captain the Indian National Men's hockey Team. Eight years later, the 29 year old has firmly established himself as one of the pillars of the team.
Playing in the centre-half position, Sardar is the team's biggest play-maker. And one who is immensely respected by the team. He is also, hands down one of the fittest Indian athletes around. Interestingly, he also has quite a subtle sense of humour.
After the 2014 Asian Games gold medal winning performance, Sardar had told NDTV, "When I see a man with a paunch, I feel scared that I will become like that in the future. I feel hockey has kept me in shape, so I need to keep playing the game. For that I have to keep myself fit and keep working hard."
What makes Sardar a successful captain is his man management skills. Something that he seems to be quite adept at. But is the team scared of him?
Sardar told NDTV, "No one is scared of anyone these days. Some players, you can be gentle with the, others you need to be strict with. Later you can say sorry. Depends on what is required and what the player is like. I change my style of communication accordingly."
Sardar's list of achievements is a long one. He was adjudged the Player of the Tournament in the 2010 Sultan Azlan Shah tournament where India won the gold. He has two Commonwealth Games silver medals. An Asian Games bronze medal. And the biggest feather in his cap, the 2014 Asian Games gold medal. In 2010, Sardar was also included in the FIH's all star team.
It wasn't a surprise then that he was the highest-paid marquee players at the inaugural Hockey India League auctions. The Delhi franchise bought him for Rs 42.49 lakh. He finished with the Player of the Tournament award
The Padma Shri recipient, who is also an officer with the Haryana Police has made 243 appearances for the senior Men's National team and scored 15 goals. His next target of course is a medal at the Rio Olympics.
NDTV Sports
How do our athletes maintain elite performance?
How do our Olympic athletes maintain elite performance?
We asked Emily Whatling - Lead Physiotherapist for the Men's Great Britain & England Hockey Team - for her insight.
Recovery is a huge part of our post-game and training strategy, so when we were looking for ways to maximise muscle recovery, compression garments were considered, and we chose 2XU as the Official Compression Equipment Supplier of Great Britain and England Hockey because of their high spec, the range of products and comfort.
Since using the products, more benefits have become clear including their ability to maintain shape after repeated washes and the mmHg pressure which far outweighs its competitors. This is important in the compression and recovery of muscles when repairing from repeated bouts of exercise.
Our senior teams all use 2XU's MCS tights as part of our recovery protocol post-game. These provide the anatomical mapping inside the tights, graded compression and un cuffed ankles. The graded compression is important in encouraging blood flow from bottom to top and the anatomical mapping helps to support the right muscles in the right places. Athlete feedback reports that ‘it feels like they hug your muscles, facilitating them in function, rather than simply sliding over the skin.’ For this reason many of our senior hockey athletes wear them not just for recovery but for pitch training and gym-based work.
Ultimately our aim with our elite athletes is for them to recover faster and train harder. 2XU compression garments contribute to limiting muscle soreness and damage, enabling just that!
To improve your own performance and recovery with 2XU, the Official Compression Equipment Supplier of England and GB Hockey please visit www.englandhockeystore.co.uk or www.2xu.com/uk
England Hockey Board Media release
Shepherd: Scotland’s women team is “buzzing”
Scotland women v Spain June 2016
Scotland’s women’s team Head Coach Gordon Shepherd said his players are “buzzing” after pushing Olympic-bound Spain hard in four international challenges last week, and he hopes the squad can maintain the form shown in blistering Alicante heat during a Four Nations tournament in Dublin, which starts later this month, writes Nigel Duncan.
The coach is building towards the World League 2 clashes in Spain in February when Scotland play their hosts and Azerbaijan plus five other teams yet to qualify.
Shepherd revealed: “The girls were buzzing coming home from Spain. If we can compete with Spain at this stage as they prepare for the Olympics in Rio then, progressively, we should be in a better place to compete with them and other countries who qualify for the World League in February as we have more matches and a winter programme ahead of us.”
Shepherd said the players felt cheated out of Friday’s game when they lost 2-1, including a highly-controversial opening goal for the home side.
He added: “We’ve proved we can compete over the four games, two of them in heat of above 30C. We proved to be fitter than Spain and I have already sent a note to the support staff praising them for the work they have done with the girls. They are fitter and stronger squad than they have ever been and that work will continue during the summer and beyond.”
Shepherd has pin-pointed areas to work on during games following the four narrow defeats in Spain.
He added: “We created a number of opportunities which we did not convert and we will work on composure inside the circle. The more we play against teams of that quality the better we will get. Defensively, we have things to work on and small tweaks will make us a more difficult team to beat. However, the girls performed brilliantly against a top flight country.”
There is now real competition for places and he warned: “We did not put out our strongest team against Spain on Friday but they were all outstanding. We now have 11 forwards contesting six places and we also have competition in defence. People in form will get the nod.”
Scottish Hockey Union media release
Tech win on the road
By Jared Smith
TCOB's Lee Moir, right, scored one of his team's two rapid-fire goals to start the second half and set up a 4-1 win over MCOB in Levin on Saturday.
A 'mad-minute' of rapid fire goals helped Tech College Old Boys snap a long dry spell in the Manawatu Division 1 competition, beating MCOB 4-1 in Levin on Saturday.
Picking up their second victory of the competition, coming after consecutive weekends of spirited but fruitless efforts against top sides Massey and HSHC, the TCOB squad still has the barest of outside chances to finish fourth if they can win all three of their remaining games.
Coach Russell Burgess said playing away for the third straight weekend was still taking a toll, having only two bench players, with one having to leave during the match.
"The team struggled with the change of surface and took a while to settle down."
On a very cold afternoon, MCOB went 1-0 off a stroke and kept that advantage at halftime.
"It wasn't a stroke, we saw it as an umpire indiscretion," said Burgess.
But then his team exploded immediately after the break to be leading 2-1 after 90 seconds as Zack Yearbury and Lee Moir connected with field goals.
Twelve minutes later, Ryan Gray banged another goal home and then later Yearbury picked up his second in a man of the match performance.
"The boys actually hit their straps. The tempo lifted in the second half," said Burgess.
"The play between the 25m and 25m was very consistent and the short, sharp passing - lacking in the first half but evident in the second half - took a toll [on MCOB]."
Keeper Andrew Thomas had a good match in-goal for the visitors.
After three weeks of road games, Burgess will be happy to be back at Gonville on Saturday for the 3pm clash with College.
While the side will still have personnel issues with two younger players away in Australia, the return of Craig Ritani will be most welcomed and adds another dimension to the side.
Meanwhile, the combined Whanganui team kept their roll going in the Division 2 Women's Premier grade by putting five goals past HSHC B to stay on top of the four-team table.
Leading 1-0 at halftime in likewise cold weather at the Twin Turfs in Palmerston North, Whanganui pulled away in the second half with Charlotte Harding getting a double, along with Kirsty Parsons and Michelle Lowe joining her on the score sheet.
"It was a little bit patchy at times," said coach Colleen Baylis.
"Going down there and being cold made for some not pretty hockey."
Teenagers Rebecca Baker and Jacinta Manville were showing the effects of 10 days of hockey, having had games for their school, while Baylis joked she and "11 and a half players" with the veterans Lowe and Jan Dixon (hamstring) coming back gingerly.
Whanganui will rematch the HSHC Evergreens in Gonville at 1.30pm on Saturday, in an interesting matchup given Evergreens beat both Whanganui and College Development 2-1, yet lost to HSHC B by the same score.
College, after blitzing undefeated through the first round of competition when it was nine teams, have now lost twice in a row since the split to Premier and Consolation.
While Baylis is encouraged by her team's progress, she pointed out the Premier division will consist of semifinals, so "we can't get too far ahead of ourselves" about current form when everyone will have an equal chance to make the final.
Wanganui Chronicle
List of Probables for National Under 21 Camp
A total of 31 probables have been invited for the National under 21 training camp to be conducted at the National Hockey Stadium, Lahore.
The players have been asked to report on the evening of July 10.
The camp is being held to prepare the boys for the European tour and the Junior World Cup in India.
LIST OF JUNIOR PROBABLES FOR TRAINING CAMP
GOALKEEPERS:
1. Ali Raza - NBP
2. Hafiz Ali Umair - SSGC
3. Usman Ghani - Railways
4. Muneer-ur-Rehman - SSGC
5. Roman Khan - KPK Whites
FULL BACKS:
1. M. Atif Mushtaq - NBP
2. Hassan Anwar - SSGC
3. Mubasshir Ali - NBP
4. Zahid Ullah - PAF
HALVES:
1. Abu Bakar Mahmood - NBP
2. Faizan - NBP
3. M. Junaid Kamal - NBP
4. M. Usman - Railways
5. Muhammad Qasim - WAPDA
6. Tanzeem-ul-Hassan - Railways
7. Muhammad Adnan - SSGC
8. Ammad Shakeel Butt - NBP
9. Ali Raza - SSGC
FORWARDS:
1. Shan Irshad - NBP
2. M. Azfar Yaqoob - NBP
3. Muhammad Dilber - NBP
4. Muhammad Atiq - NBP
5. M. Bilal Qadir - NBP
6. Mohsin Sabir - Navy
7. Rana Sohail Riaz - SSGC
8. Sami Ullah - PAF
9. Muhammad Rizwan - SSGC
10. Muhammad Naveed - NBP
11. Bilal Mahmood - WAPDA
12. Fahad Ullah - PAF
13. Amir Ali - NBP
OFFICIALS:
1. Brig. (R) Khalid Mukhtar Farani - Manager
2. Mr. Tahir Zaman - Head Coach
3. Mr. Zeeshan Ashraf - Coach
4. Mr. Muhammad Irfan Sr. - Asstt. Coach
5. Mr. Waqas Butt - Asstt. GK Coach
6. Dr. Muhammad Adnan - Team Doctor
7. Rana Ghazanfar Ali - Nutritionist
8. Mr. Zahid Ali - Video-Analyst
PHF Media release
Bannu's Glorious Hockey Tradition being Revived
During the recently concluded OGDCL 5-A Side hockey tournament in Lahore, the Peshawar Panthers team included as many as six players from Bannu: Fahadullah, Khairullah, Roman Khan, Amjad Khan, Sohail Sheraz and Junaid. A few days back, the probables for the national under 18 camp were announced. 15 boys from Bannu are among them.
It is very heartening to see players from this town of KPK making headlines again. For quite some time, there had been a lull for various reasons with security the main issue. Law and order in the area has improved a lot as a result of the operation Zarb-e-Azb.
In the past, Bannu, has been a big hockey nursery and gave several stars to Pakistan hockey.
The biggest name is that of Brigadier Abdul Hameed Hameedi. He was Pakistan’s captain at the 1956 Olympics when the country won its first ever medal- silver- in any sport. Then Hameedi attained immortal place in the annals of Pakistan’s sporting history. Under his captaincy, at the 1960 Olympics, Pakistan won its first ever Olympic gold medal.
Hameedi’s younger brother Abdul Rasheed Junior, cracker of a centre forward, was Pakistan’s joint top scorer at 1968 Olympics (gold Medal) and top scorer at 1972 Olympics (silver medal). He captained Pakistan when they won bronze at 1976 Olympics. Rasheed Jr is the first person to win the hockey World Cup both as player (1971) and as manager (1994).
Another Bannu man who distinguished himself both on the field as well as on the bench was Saeed Khan. A member of two World Cup winning teams (1978 and 1982), he was the coach of Pakistan’s victorious team of the 1994 World Cup.
Qazi Mohib, who died young, was the third player from Bannu to captain the national side. The major tournaments where he wore the captain’s arm band were the 1990 World Cup (silver), 1989 Asia Cup (gold) and 1990 Asian Games (gold).
Farhat Khan bemused the opponents and delighted the viewers with his outstanding stick work winning World Cup silver (1990), Olympics bronze (1992), Asia Cup gold (1989) and Asian Games gold (1990).
Activity on the grounds has resumed. One hopes to see more stars from this hockey fertile area.
PHF Media release
Poor response for new MHL season
KUALA LUMPUR: The response has been poor for the new season of the Malaysia Hockey League (MHL).
Only 20 teams have joined the league when the deadline for entries closed on Friday.
A total of 30 teams competed in all the three categories – two for men and one for women – last season.
All six teams who competed in the Premier Division last year are back again. They are Kuala Lumpur Hockey Club (KLHC), champions Terengganu Hockey Club, Sapura, Maybank, Universiti Kuala Lumpur and Tenaga Nasional.
In Division One, there were 13 teams last year but only eight have signed up for the new season. In the women’s category, the figure is down to six from the 11 that took part last year.
George Koshy, the Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) deputy president and competitions committee chairman, admitted that the turnout was rather poor.
“We are still hoping that some of the teams that played last year will take part. We will call them up and see if they would like to play. The deadline is closed but if they are interested we will accommodate them,” he said.
Initially, the MHC were hoping to have eight teams in the Premier Division. But with the poor response in Division One, they are now unable to promote the two teams to the top flight.
For the new season, the MHC have restricted the use of national players – local and foreign – per team. Only eight national players – local and foreign – are allowed to play during a match. All the teams are, however, still allowed to hire six foreign players.
The Division One will kick off on Aug 5. The Premier Division will only begin on Aug 15.
The Star of Malaysia
Wake Forest puts in new field hockey turf, makes bid for 2019 NCAAs
By John Dell
Kentner Stadium has new turf for use this fall for the Wake Forest field hockey team.
When the Wake Forest field hockey team hits the field at Kentner Stadium in August something will be very different.
The stadium has been fitted for a brand new field turf that will give the Deacons a bounce in their step as they chase an ACC title. The old field, which had been there since 2004, was in need of a replacement.
“In about a month the finishing touches will be in with the netting behind both goals so we’re excited,” said coach Jen Averill, who has been at Wake Forest for the last 25 years and has three national championships to her credit.
Kentner Stadium, which is also used by the track and field teams at Wake Forest, seats around 3,200 and has been used for the ACC Tournament in the past. This fall’s ACC Tournament will be held there, and Averill said they hope to land the NCAA Final Four in 2019.
“We put in a bid for the 2019 NCAAs, and with this new turf we think that will help our cause,” Averill said.
The turf that was replaced was an updated version of the Astroturf 12 with PVC foam pad on top of Porous Asphalt. Averill said it’s the best way to lay out such a big field and to have the proper drainage.
“You want the water to not drain right away and the turf that was there was definitely showing its age,” Averill said. “You can get about a good seven years or so out of field like we had.”
According to the company, AstroTurf, replacing an existing field costs anywhere from $700,000 to $900,000.
“There’s no question it will help,” Averill said. “Some of our recruits already want me to send them pictures of how it looks.”
The old field had some separation on a few of the seams that had worn out. Averill said that players want a smooth field where the ball can roll truer, and the new field will have that.
“There’s a reason you don’t see logos on the field of play because after a while those logos start to wreak havoc on the seams,” Averill said.
The Deacons were 13-6 last season and lost to Michigan 2-1 in the NCAA Tournament. Averill has a talented team coming back for this season, but she is also looking forward to possible hosting the NCAA Final Four in 2019.
“We’ve hosted it four times before and the community and Wake Forest has proven that it can be done,” Averill said. “I’m hoping that it will happen so we can once again get the Final Four here at Wake Forest.”
This year’s Final Four will be in Norfolk, Va., and in 2017 it will be held in Louisville.
Winston-Salem Journal
What ailing star Mohammed Shahid means to Indian hockey
Sundeep Misra
Mohammed Shahid
In the late 70’s and early 80’s, you didn’t go to watch hockey. You went to watch magic; mesmerizing magic created by a man from Benares called Mohammed Shahid.
Those were the kind of skills that couldn’t be taught. No amount of coaching camps, elite coaches could create supple wrists that, honestly, were an extension of the hockey stick. Shahid, short but lithe displayed his dribbling skills like a card-dealer in a casino. Defences retracted inwards, backing off not willing to take on this twisting and turning dervish whose only challenge in life seemed to be cutting through defences like a combine harvester in a wheat field. Fans watched in disbelief. Opposition coaches gave up. Defenders wanted to quit the sport. Little kids wanted to know ‘dodge kaise karte hain’. Commentators lost their voice if Shahid didn’t have the ball. In those days, Mohammed Shahid was hockey.
Today, the Mohammed of Benares has a different challenge. In the steel and chrome building which they call Medanta hospital in Gurgaon, 56-year-old Shahid's body-swerves between medical tests, doctors opinion, a deteriorating liver condition and spluttering kidneys. After the initial media hysteria, things are okay now. The Railways (Shahid’s employers) and the Sports Ministry are under-writing his treatment. His wife Parveen and children Heena and Saif are confident they can take care of everything. Zafar Iqbal, his partner in crime when they hunted in pairs for India is worried but says, “We can take him abroad if need be. We will do everything for him.”
It was a bout of jaundice that started it all. Not treating it well and ignoring the long-term effects of it are the reasons that Mohammed Shahid is away from his beloved Benares; a city that means everything to him. No amount of promotions, higher paid jobs in other government institutions could make Mohammed Shahid leave Benares. He played for Railways, worked for Railways. Today, fortunately, the Railways stand by him. In the forgotten world of Indian sport stars, oblivion and penury are like a retirement epitaph. Shahid had dodged past that too, mercifully.
It was 1979 when Vasudevan Bhaskaran was informed that a kid from the UP Sports Hostel has been selected for a tour to Malaysia. One of the four teams, India would play the then World Champion Pakistan. Bhaskaran had heard fleetingly about a young boy who refused to let go off the ball; but had never met him. “He was extremely shy and young,” remembers Bhaskaran.
After a camp that lasted a week, the team departed for the Malaysian capital. In Kuala Lumpur, Shahid shared the hotel room with the team captain Bhaskaran. “We got to know each in the first two days as it rained continuously,” says Bhaskaran. “I spoke to him in Hindi and before the game against Pakistan told him think you are playing for UP Sports Hostel.”
India drew with Pakistan 2-2, against a side that had the likes of Akhtar Rasool, Manzoor, Hassan Sadar and Hanif Khan. Akhtar Rasool, one of the world’s greatest centre-halfs, walked up to Bhaskaran after the match and asked, “Yeh ladka kaun hai…bahut dodge marta hai.” Shahid went onto win the best player award and the princely amount of 500 Ringgit.
Physicality was not an attribute that Indian hockey was based on. Shahid found himself in a team that had touch artists like Zafar Iqbal, Mervyn Fernandez, Charanjit Kumar, MM Sommayya, Surinder Singh Sodhi and MK Kaushik. But the then coach of the 1980 Moscow Olympics bound team, Balkishen Singh, had reservations about Shahid’s defensive abilities. Bhaskaran’s logic today is – “Will you ask Messi, Maradona to defend or create?”
“So I told Balkishen that leave Shahid alone to create the moves upfront which keeps the defence occupied while others get the space to move and score goals.” India won the Olympic gold in Moscow.
More than a player, Shahid was an artist. His job was to dazzle. Never score goals. So much intent went into the geometry of angles, feints, dodges, accuracy, speed that invariably he managed to draw the whole defence towards him. The rest of the forwards only waited for a through ball. It came, but after Shahid had made a monkey of the defenders.
“There were times when I was afraid that some defender would hit him out of sheer anger,” recalls Bhaskaran. In fact, Bhaskaran recalls an incident that happened in the Nehru Hockey Tournament in Delhi where Shahid ran circles around a defender for almost a minute till the defender, now suffering from vertigo, just clung to Shahid like a tired boxer. It won’t be off the mark that Shahid played for the fans. Hockey wasn’t as much about expressing himself as it was about basking in the applause of the fans. From the Aga Khan to the Nehru and the Beighton, Shahid was the sultan of the turf.
Very few players come near him when it comes to the dribble. The ones who immediately come to mind are the German Stefan Blocher, the 1984 and 1988 Olympics silver medallist from Germany. Spain’s Pol Amat's dribbling was exquisite, and as a player, he was instrumental in Spain winning the silver at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and the 1998 Utrecht World Cup. Both Stefan and Pol played with their heads down, dribbling past defenders at high speed. Pakistan’s Shahbaz Ahmed came after Stefan later winning the 1990 World Cup silver and the gold in 1994 in Sydney. Shahbaz, with his amazing skills, played at a very high speed and with his head up. The only difference between them and Shahid was the height. All of them were close to six feet. If watched from the top of a light tower, Shahid would resemble a Pac Man, swaying left and right, gobbling up defenders.
Shahid’s love for Benares probably robbed India of a good coach stationed in Delhi. But the argument is also of Shahid coaching in Benares and keeping the lineage of dribblers alive. It’s also true that for players of that high a skill, the end of applause is also the demise of the soul; a soul that lived for the millions of fans applauding his every move.
Medanta is the last place Shahid would want to be. Or for that matter anyone. His ears don’t ring anymore with thunderous applause. Lying on the bed as doctor’s work around him, Shahid hears concerned voices. The defenders have hemmed in Mohammed Shahid. Now is the time for the Champion to move. To show his skills. To dribble past this lot and claim the title – The Mohammed of Benares. Not of Medanta.
Firstpost